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1887

President - Frank Grey Smith
Vice Presidents - Henry Harrison, James Byrne, Charles Forrester, G. Aitken
Treasurer - Arthur Hunt
Secretary - James Morris
Selection Committee - JJ Kelly, W. Burns, H. Tuckfield, GS Murdoch, J Farquhar, A Hunt, F Franks
Committee - HH Morrison, S Baird, J Farquhar, GS Murdoch, H Griffith
Secretary of Seconds - W Lynar
Captain - James Kelly

For the first time teams were awarded four points for a win and two for a draw. Umpires bounced the ball to start each quarter instead of throwing it in the air, except at the start of the game when a kick-off was still used. Timekeepers were employed to ring the bell at the end of each quarter.

Alterations to the VFA's procedures included the season being mandated as commencing on 1 May and ending 30 September, and that weekday matches other than those for the Queen's Birthday would ont be recognised. Games were set as 50 minutes per half in June/July, and 60 minutes in other months of the season.

The Intercolonial Football Conference passed rules stating that goals should be indicated by two flags and behinds by one flag and that goal umpires should be the sole judge of the legality of goals. The phrase 'free kick' was temporarily removed from the rules, with the words 'kick' and 'mark' replacing it.

The club's Annual General Meeting was held on March 29 at the Victoria Coffee Palace. Henry Harrison chaired in the absence of President Frank Grey Smith. The club took a trip to Tasmania during August, and after a 'lively' dinner at the end of the series the Tasmanian association wrote to the VFA informing them that they would not put on any more dinners for touring teams in the future.

Matches scheduled for Saturday 2 July were cancelled due to heavy grounds caused by rain. A game scheduled against Port Melbourne the previous Saturday had already been cancelled due to the Friendly Societies' Ground being wet and swampy from heavy rain.

In September J. Morris resigned as a delegate to the VFA and was replaced by C. Jenvey.

The first 20 won 10, lost 13 and drew three. 103 goals were scored and 109 conceded. Receipts were 368p, 10s, 11d and an expenditure of 432p 13s 2d.

VFA Matches

DateOpponentResult
7 May University WIN
14 May Hotham LOSS
21 May Williamstown LOSS
24 May Ballarat WIN
28 May South Williamstown WIN
4 June Geelong LOSS
11 June Fitzroy DRAW
18 June Essendon LOSS
21 June Carlton LOSS
9 July South Melbourne DRAW
16 July Fitzroy LOSS
23 July Carlton LOSS
30 July Essendon WIN
6 August South Melbourne LOSS
27 August St Kilda WIN
3 September Carlton LOSS
10 September Hotham LOSS
17 September Geelong LOSS
24 September Footscray WIN

Other Matches

DateOpponentResult
23 April Clifton WIN
30 April Combined Schools WIN
1 June Tasmania WIN
10 August Hobart LOSS
13 August Southern Tasmania LOSS
17 August Railway DRAW
20 August Tasmania WIN

Players

George Aitken, WR Bailey, S. Baird, J. Brooks, R. Brown, T. Burke, A. Burkin, W. Burns, A. Carnegie. T. Dodds, A. Edwards, Eggleston, F. Everitt, Bob Ewing, Eddie Fox, F. Franks, W. Franks, Froude, J. Garton, Ed Griffith, George Hallett, N. Harper, J. Johnson, James Kelly, A. King, Howard King, E. Lynar, A. McCrindle, M. McDonnell, M. McKenzie, P. Millard, M. Morris, Howard Morrison, P. Murphy, Fred Plant, Dick Robinson, H. Smith, C. Spooner, Stewart, Billy Stiffe, G. Strachan, Strong, T. Thompson, H. Tuckfield, J. Wiseman

Goalkickers

W. Burns 13, T. Dodds 12, A. McCrindle 5, Ed Griffith 4, M. McDonnell 4, J. Wiseman 3, S. Baird 2, R. Brown 2, A. Carnegie 2, Bob Ewing 2, P. Millard 2, Morris 2, G. Strachan 2, WR Bailey 1, F. Everitt 1, Franks 1, J. Garton 1, James Kelly 1, E. Lynar 1, P. Murphy 1, Dick Robinson 1, T. Thompson 1

Ladder

TeamPWDLFA
1 Carlton 25203213673
2 Geelong 23183212363
3 South Melbourne 20124410354
4 Fitzroy 2212557861
5 Port Melbourne22142610755
6 Williamstown209386776
7 Richmond 208486673
8 Hotham 2174108492
9 Essendon 197396271
10Melbourne 2072116987
11 Prahran 1852116975
12 St Kilda19411456106
13 University19401545113
14 South Williamstown1832133578
15 Footscray1422102547
16Ballarat156276648
17South Ballarat124535545
18Ballarat Imperials146355351

Second 20

DateOpponentResultScoreGoalkickers
7 May Richmond UNKNOWN ?
14 May Hotham UNKNOWN ?
24 May Morwell WIN 4-1
28 May St Kilda WIN 7.13 - 0.3
4 June Geelong UNKNOWN ?
11 June Fitzroy DRAW 2.6 - 2.12
18 June Essendon WIN 3.8 - 1.3
25 June Port Melbourne DRAW3.7 - 3.3 Match abandoned when the ball burst
9 July South Melbourne UNKNOWN ?
16 July Fitzroy LOSS0.6 - 1.5
23 July Carlton UNKNOWN ?
6 August South Melbourne UNKNOWN ?
20 August Essendon LOSS 2.5 - 3.9
3 September Carlton UNKNOWN ?
10 September Hotham UNKNOWN ?
17 September Geelong UNKNOWN ?


Media
"Proposed alterations of the rules" - The Australasian 06/11/1886
The Argus - 01/04/1887
The Australasian - 02/04/1887
Sydney Mail 07/05/1887
"Postponement of today's matches" - The Australasian 02/07/1887
"Melbourne vs Port Melbourne" - The Australasian 02/07/1887
Otago Witness - 08/07/1887
Sydney Mail - 13/08/1887
The Argus - 10/09/1887
Sydney Mail - 15/10/1887
The Australasian - 14/04/1888
The Age - 16/04/1888
Origins of Australian Football volume 3 by Mark Pennings

Links
Footystats Chronology
footytimeline.com 1887
Blueseum 1887 page
VFA Tables